Ring-expander.



F. OQANDERSON.

RING EXPANDER.

APPLICATION FILED MAR. 30. m2.

Patented May 11, 1915.

2 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

F. O. ANDERSON.

RING EXPANDER.

APPLICATION FILED MAR, 30. 1912.

Patented May 11, 1915.

2 SHEETS-SHEET 1.

'Zl/r' am/ms v Wm? Ma son 75; has Qflornegs I g i FRANK O. ANDERSON, OF HINNEAPOLIS,.MINNE$OTA, ASSIGNOR T0 ALFRED ANDERSON, 0F MINNEAPOLIS, MINNESOTA.

RING-EXPANDER.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Application filed March 3!), 1912. Seria1No.687,300.

To all whom it may concern Be it known that I, FRANK O. ANDERSON, a citizen of the United States, residing at Minneapolis, in the county of Hcnnepin and State of Minnesota, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Ring- Expanders; and I do hereby declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the invention, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it ap )ertains to make and use the saine.

ly invention relates to what is known as ring expanders, to-wit, devices for increasing the diameter of rings by a rolling and drawing out process, and has for its object to generally improve the construction and operation of devices of this character.

To such ends, generally stated, the invention consists of the novel devices and combinations of devices hereinafter described and defined in the claims.

In the accompanying drawings which illustrate the invention, like characters indicate like parts throughout the several views.

Referring to the drawings, Figure 1 is a view in front elevation showing the improved ring expander with some parts broken away and some parts sectioned; 'Fig. 2 is a vertical section taken on the line m m on Fig. 1, some parts being shown in full; Fig. 3 is a horizontal section taken on the line :12 w on Fig. 1; Fig. 4 shows the ring expander in side elevation, some parts being sectioned on the line m a" on Fig. 1, and some parts being broken away; Fig. 5 is a view in elevation showing certain of the parts of the expander removed from working position; and Fig. 6 is a view corresponding in line of its'section to Fig. 3

-but illustrating a slightly modified construction.

The frame 1 of the expander is a continuous rectangular metal .structure, preferably in the form of a casting provided with a base 2. The said frame 1 is formed with a large rectangular opening, to the vertical edges of which, guide strips 3 are detachably secured. Preferably, the said guide strips 3 are formed with flat backs and with centrally projecting ribs 4. Said strips 3 may be detachably secured to the vertical portions of the frame, 1 in different Aways, b t referably, this is acco p l g by means of retaining'screws 5 threaded through the sides of said frame and having reduced ends that are seated in depressions formed in the backs of said strips 3; y

The numeral 6 indicates a bifurcated platen or anvil block which, at its ends, is provided with grooves that receive the flanges 1 of the guide strips 3, so that the said platen will be held in working position seated at the bottom'of the opening 1 of the frame 1. The laterally spaced bearing prongs or lugs of the platen 6 are formed with axially alined notches or open seats in which the ends of a short roller shaft 7 are detachably seated. A grooved platen roller 8 is journaled on the central portion of the shaft 7 with its lower portion working between the bearing lugs of the platen 6. The peripheral groove 8 of the said platen roller 8 correspondsv to the desired cross section of the ring which is to be expanded, and from this, it, of course, follows that for different rings, different platen-rollers, having the properly formed grooves, will be employed. As the roller shaft 7 may be picked from its seats in the platen 6 and easily withdrawn from the platen roller, the substitution of platen rollers is, of course, an easy matter.

Working in the frame opening 1 above the platen 6 is a presser head or block 9 having laterally spaced depending prongs, the

vertical edges of which are formed with grooves that receive the ribs 4 of the guide strips 3, so that the said presser head is held in working osition and guided for vertical movements, y the said guide strips 3. Obviously, the guide strips 3 are, in themselves, held against displacement by the screws 5 and by the platen 6 and presser head 9. When the screws 5 are slightly retracted or screwed outward, the said elements 3, 6 and 9 may together he moved laterally out of the frame opening 1% A so-called expanding shaft 10 is rotatively mounted and detach ably seated in the depending prongs of the presser head 9 and works just above the platen roller 8. The said shaft 10 works through an elongated slot 11, in one of the vertically extended sides of the frame 1, and, at its outer end, is provided with an operating crank 12. By endwise movement, the said shaft 10 may be inserted through the slot 11 and into its seats in the prongs of the presser'head 9. The finger ring Y is over the platen roller 8 an applied on the shaft 10 by passing the said shaft endwise through the head while said ring is placed approximatel in position between the prongs of the presser head 9.

Working with threaded engagement through the top of the frame 1 is a strong pressure applyin screw 13, the lower end of which is swivele to the upper central portion of the presser head 9. At its upper end, said screw 13 is provided with an end piece or wheel 14 by means of which, the desired power may be applied necessary to force the presser head 9 downward and thereby cause the shaft 10 to press the ring Y into the groove of the platen roller 8. It will be noted that the pressure produced by the screw 13 on the head 9 is in a direct vertical line with the point where the shaft 10 presses the lower portion of the ring Y against the upper portion of the platen roller 8. This distributes the pressing force in such a way that the presser head 9 is not cramped within the frame'l and the strain on the frame 1 isdivided equally between the laterally spaced vertical side portions thereof.

To guide the ring Y for rotary movements in a true vertical plane and to prevent wabbling movements of the said ring as it is rotated, I provide improved ring guiding devices, preferably comprising a pair of laterall v spaced guide plates 15 located between the depending prongs of the presser head 9, and at their upper ends pivotally attached at 16 to a web formed as a part of the said presser head. To the lower edge of each guide plate 15, two longitudinally spaced guide rollers 17 are journaled for independent rotary movements. These rollers 17 are arranged to engage the opposite sides or edges of the ring Y and to hold the same for rotation in a true vertical plane. As the rear rollers 17 engage with a downwardly moving portion of the ring Y. and the front rollers 17 engage with an upwardly moving portion of said ring. it is evident that the said front and rear rollers will be simultaneously rotated in reverse directions, and hence. the importance of their independent journals. These rollers. as is evident, firmly guidethe ring as it is being rotated in the expanding action and afford practically no frictional resistance to the movement of the ring and do not deface or distort the edges of the 'ring. inasmuch as they have a rolling contact therewith. The guide plates 15 are adapted to be vertically spaced at their lower or roller equipped edges. and to be independcntly adjusted by small but long screw rods 18 havingthreaded engagement with the depending prongs of the presser head 9 and with their inner edges engaging the backs of the said plates. At their outer ends, the screws 18 are preferably provided with means knurled heads 19. One of the said screws projects outward through the upper portion of the frame slot 11 and is permitted vertical movements thereby, but the other screw rod 18 projects through a vertical slot 20 formed in the opposite side of the frame 1. Obviously, the shaft 10, the adjusting rods 18, and guide plates 15 all move vertically with the presser head 9.-

By means of the adjusting screw 13, the presser head and expanding shaft may be pressed downward so as to press the ring Y against the platen wheel 8 under any desired pressure; and when the said shaft is then rotated, the frictional engagement between said shaft and the ring will cause the latter to rotate, and under the pressure thus applied, and the rotary movement of the ring, the said ring will be increased in diameter, or expanded. Its original cross section may be Wldened, or a new cross section given thereto, by the use of a platen roller having a roove of the pro er form. The extent to w ich the ring wil be expanded will, of course, depend upon the ressure applied thereto, and the number of rotations given the expanding shaft 10.

In a modified construction illustrated in Fig. 6, narrow guide strips or bars 3 are substituted for the guide strips 3, and these are seated partly in the grooves of the platen 6 and presser head 9 and partly in grooves 3 formed in the vertical side portions of the frame 1. The set screws 5" employed in this instance, need only to press against the backs of the said stri s 3. When the said parts 3 and 6 are to e removed, the guide strips 3 must be let back entirely into the grooves 3 The guide strips 3 (see particularly Fig. 5) are provided with longitudinal or vertical slots that correspond to the slots 11 and 20 of the sides of the frame 1, against which they are applied. This is, of course, necessary in order 'to permit the free vertical movements of the presser head 9 and the shaft 10 and adjustable rods 18 which are carried thereby.

What I claim is:

1. In a ring expander, the combination with a rigid endless supporting frame having an opening with parallel side walls, of detachab e rigidly secured guide stri s applied to the said parallel side walls of the opening of said frame,'a presser head having tongue and groove sliding engagement with said guide strips and normally held thereby interlocked to said frame but removable laterally from said frame with said guide strips, a platen roller journaled in the lower portion of the opening of said frame, and an expanding shaft detachahlv iournaled in said presser head and working throulgh a clearance passage in said frame.

2. n a ring expander, the combination I with a rigid endless supporting frame hav- I interlocked to said frame but removable laterally from said frame with said guide strips, an anvil block in the lower portion of the opening of said frame interlocked to the lower portions of said guide strips, a platen roller journaled to said anvil block, the said presser head and anvil block being normally held in cooperative alinement by said guide strips and resser head and bein removable laterally rom said frame wit said guide strips.

3. In a ring expander, the combination with a frame, of a platen roller supported by said frame, a presser head movable on said frame toward and from said presser roller, an expanding shaft journaled in said presser head, and ring guiding devices comprising laterally spaced pivoted guide plates, each having at its free edge a pair of guide rollers journaled for independent rotations and adapted to engage the sides of a ring to be expanded.

4. In a ring expander, the combination with a frame, of a platen roller supported by said frame, a presser head movable on said frame toward and from said resser roller, an expanding shaft journaled 1n said presser head, and ring guiding devices comprising laterally spaced pivoted guide plates, each having at its free edge a pair of guide rollers journaled for independent rotations and adapted to engage the sides of a ring to be ex anded, said expanding shaft projecting tirough a vertical clearance passage in one side of the said frame, and screw rods working through the sides of said presser head and engageable with said pivoted guide plates to ad ust the same, the said screw rods working through clearance passages in the sides of said frame.

5. In a ring .expander, the combination with a frame, of a platen rol er and cotiperating expanding shaft mounted on said frame, and cooperating pivoted ring guiding plates having independently movable rollers for direct engagement with the ring.

In testimony whereof I afiix my signature in presence of two witnesses.

FRANK O. ANDERSON. Witnesses:

\ HARRY D. Kneonn, F. D. Mnacnan r. 

